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Di

“To be a bridesmaid once is quite enough, Aunt Em…”

When next morning she met Wilfrid at the Wallace Collection, she said:

“Would you by any chance like to be at Clare’s wedding tomorrow?”

“No hat and no black tails; I gave them to Stack.”

“I remember how you looked, perfectly. You had a grey cravat and a gardenia.”

“And you had on sea-green.”

“Eau-de-nil. I’d like you to have seen my family, though, they’ll all be there; and we could have discussed them afterwards.”

“I’ll turn up among the ‘also ran’ and keep out of sight.”

‘Not from me,’ thought Di

With every meeting he seemed less, as it were, divided against himself; and sometimes would look at her so intently that her heart would beat. When she looked at him, which was seldom, except when he wasn’t aware, she was very careful to keep her gaze limpid. How fortunate that one always had that pull over men, knew when they were looking at one, and was able to look at them without their knowing!

When they parted this time, he said: “Come down to Richmond again on Thursday. I’ll pick you up at Foch—two o’clock as before.”

And she said: “Yes.”

CHAPTER 6

Clare Cherrell’s wedding, in Hanover Square, was ‘fashionable’ and would occupy with a list of names a quarter of a column in the traditional prints. As Di

“So delightful for them!”

With her father and mother Clare came to Mount Street from Condaford overnight. Busy with her younger sister to the last, and feeling an emotion humorously disguised, Di

“People HAVE rolled up, haven’t they?”

They had. Clare was well known and popular, Jerry Corven even better known, if not so popular. Di

On the Corven side of the aisle were people of quite as much diversity of face and figure. Except Jack Muskham, the bridegroom, and his best man, hardly a man gave the impression of being well-dressed or of having thought about his clothes. But from their faces Di

“I should like your skeleton, Di

“I mean to be burned and scattered. H’ssh!”

The choir was coming in, followed by the officiating priests. Jerry Corven turned. Those lips smiling like a cat’s beneath that thin-cut moustache, those hardwood features and daring, searching eyes! Di

Now the bridesmaids! Hilary’s two girls, her cousins Monica and Joan, slender and keen, Little Celia Moriston, fair as a seraph (if that was female), Sheila Ferse, dark and brilliant; and toddly little A

Once on her knees, Di

The ring was on now, the fateful words said, the exhortations over; they were going to the vestry. Her mother and Hubert followed. Di

A voice in her ear said:

“Lend me your hanky, Di